PLA and ALSC's Preschool Literacy Initiative

Output Measures

Definitions:

Program: the series of activities encompassed in your service plan to implement the PLA/ALSC Preschool Literacy Initiatives

Session: an individual activity (storytime, adult education program, counseling session, etc) that is part of your overall Program

Collect the following data:

Total number of individual adults (parents and caregivers) who participate in the Program
Total number of individual children reached through the Program directly (by attending parent/caregiver/child programs) or indirectly through their association with an adult participant in the following age categories:
- Birth to 2 years
- 2 to 3 years
- 4 to 5 years
Total number of sessions held as part of the Program
Total attendance by parents and caregivers at all preschool literacy sessions

Outcome Measures

All outcome measures are based on qualitative data collected in intake and closing interviews with participating parents and caregivers. Plan to interview at least ten adult participants from each targeted segment (Pre-talkers, Talkers, Pre-readers) in your service plan. Intake interview should occur before the adult participates in the first session. The closing interview should take place immediately after the last session in the Program. If your Program design involves only one session per participant, conduct the closing interview four weeks after the session.

Do not tape interviews. Instead, take as complete notes as possible, recording the participant’s response as much “word for word” as possible. Indicate direct quotes with quotation marks.

Please submit typed copies (transcripts) of your intake and closing interviews for each participant to Elaine Meyers. Do NOT identify participants by name. Instead assign a number to each set of interviews – Participant 1, Participant 2, etc.

Feel free to add your own follow-up questions as appropriate. If you do this, please include your questions in your transcript.

Before starting the interview, use the following script:

“Because this is a pilot program, we have been asked to evaluate its effectiveness. In order to do this, I need to ask you some questions. There are no right and wrong answers, and your name will not be tied to your answers. I will preserve your confidentiality. If there are any questions that you can’t answer or prefer not to answer, just say so.”

Participant Intake and Closing Interviews: Programs for Pre-talkers

Intake interview Note: alternative language for caregivers is given in brackets.

Record parent or caregiver’s name, number and ages of children in his or her care, and the name of the presenter for their training experience.

What do you hope to get out of this program? What do you hope to learn?
Do you participate in any other parenting programs? Literacy programs?
How do you talk or communicate with to your baby? [How do you talk or communicate with the babies in your care?] Can you give me an example?
Do you encourage your baby to communicate with you, to babble and coo? [Do you encourage the babies in your care to communicate with you, to babble and coo?] Can you give me an example?
Do you read to your baby? [Do you read to the babies in your care?] How often? How much?
Do you visit the library? How often?
Does your baby see you reading? [Do the babies in your care ever see you reading?] How often?
This question is optional. Please answer only if you feel comfortable doing so. How would you describe your economic status? (Low income? Working class? Middle class? Other?)
Here’s another optional question. How would you describe yourself racially or ethnically? (African-American? Latino? White? Mixed?)
And one more optional question: How far did you go in school?

Closing Interview Note: alternative language for caregivers is given in brackets.
Record parent or caregiver’s name, number and ages of children in his or her care.
1. Are you satisfied with what you got out of this program? Do you interact differently with your baby now? [Do you interact differently with the babies in your care now?] Do you think your baby’s early literacy skills have improved as a result? [Do you think the babies’ early literacy skills have improved as a result?]
2. Do you think you talk to your baby more often now? [Do you think you talk more now with the babies in your care?] Can you give me an example?
3. Do you think your baby communicates more with you now? [Do you think the babies communicate more with you now?] Can you give me an example?
4. Do you read more to your baby now? [Do you read more to the babies now?] How often? How much?
5. Do you visit the library more now? How often? Does your baby see you reading more now? [Do the babies in your care see you reading more now?] How often?

Participant Intake and Closing Interviews: Programs for Talkers

Intake interview Note: alternative language for caregivers is given in brackets.

Record parent or caregiver’s name, number and ages of children in his or her care.
1. What do you hope to get out of this program? What do you hope to learn?
2. Do you participate in any other parenting programs? Literacy programs?
3. Do you read to your child? [Do you read to the toddlers in your care?] How often? How much?
4. Do you and your child talk about the stories you read? [Do you and the two and three year olds talk about the stories you read?] Can you give me an example?
5. Do you try to teach your child the alphabet? [Do you try to teach the two and three year olds the alphabet?] How?
6. Can your child tell YOU a simple story? [Can the toddlers tell YOU a simple story?] (Examples: How he gets ready for bed. A story she’s heard before.)
7. Do you visit the library? How often?
8. Does your child see you reading? [Do the children in your care see you reading?] How often?
9. This question is optional. Please answer only if you feel comfortable doing so. How would you describe your economic status? (Low income? Working class? Middle class? Other?)
10. Here’s another optional question. How would you describe yourself racially or ethnically? (African-American? Latino? White? Mixed?)
11. And one more optional question: How far did you go in school?
Closing interview Note: alternative language for caregivers is given in brackets.

Record parent or caregiver’s name, number and ages of children in his or her care.
1. Are you satisfied with what you got out of this program? What did you learn? Do you interact differently with your child now? [Do you interact differently with the toddlers in your care now?] Do you think your child’s early literacy skills have improved as a result of participating in this program? [Do you think the two and three year olds’ early literacy skills have improved as a result of participating in this program?]
2. Do you read to your child now? [Do you read to the small children in your care now?] How often?
3. Do you and your child talk about the stories you read? [Do you and the toddlers talk about the stories you read?] Can you give me an example?
4. Do you teach your child the alphabet? Has your child learned the names of the letters? [Have you been teaching the two and three year olds the alphabet? Have they learned the names of the letters?]
5. Can your child tell you a simple story? [Can the two and three year olds tell you a simple story?] Can you give me an example?
6. Do you visit the library? How often? Does your child see you reading? [Do the children in your care see you reading?] How often?

Participant Intake and Closing Interviews: Programs for Pre-readers

Intake interview Note: alternative language for caregivers is given in brackets.

Record parent or caregiver’s name, number and ages of children in his or her care.
1. What do you hope to get out of this program? What do you want to learn?
2. Do you participate in any other parenting programs? Literacy programs?
3. Do you and your child play word games? [Do you and the four and five year olds in your care play word games?] Like rhyming games or naming words that start with a “b” or an “s” sound. Can you give me an example?
4. Do you try to teach your child the alphabet? Does he or she know the names of the letters? Can your child write his or her name? [Do you try to teach the four and five year olds the alphabet? Do they know the names of the letters? Can they write their names?]
5. Do you read to your child? [Do you read to the children in your care?] How often? How much?
6. Do you talk about the stories you read with your child? [Do you talk about the stories you read with the children?] Can you give me an example?
7. Does your child ever tell you a simple story? [Do the four and five year olds ever tell you a simple story?] Can you give me an example? Do you visit the library regularly? How often?
8. Does your child ever see you reading? [Do the children ever see you reading?] How often?
9. This question is optional. Please answer only if you feel comfortable doing so. How would you describe your economic status? (Low income? Working class? Middle class? Other?)
10. Here’s another optional question. How would you describe yourself racially or ethnically? (African-American? Latino? White? Mixed?)
11. And one more optional question: How far did you go in school?
Closing Interview Note: alternative language for caregivers is given in brackets.

Record parent or caregiver’s name, number and ages of children in his or her care.
1. Are you satisfied with what you got out of this program? What did you learn? Do you interact differently with your child now? Do you think your child’s early literacy skills have improved as a result of participating in this program? [Do you interact differently now with the children in your care? Do you think their early literacy skills have improved as a result of your participating in this program?]
2. Do you and your child play word games now? [Do you and the children play word games now?] Can you give me an example?
3. Does your child know the names of the letters? Can your child write his or her name? [Do the four and five year olds in your care know the names of the letters? Can they write their names?]
4. Do you read to your child now? [Do you read to the children in your care?] How often? How much?
5. Do you talk about the stories you read with your child? [Do you talk about the stories you read with the children?] Can you give me an example?
6. Does your child ever tell you a story? [Do the children tell YOU stories?] Can you give me an example?
7. Do you visit the library regularly? How often?
8. Does your child ever see you reading? [Do the children in your care ever see you reading? How often?